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Articles The Lighter Side The Dean Winchester Troubled Profile of Doom
The Dean Winchester Troubled Profile of Doom
Wednesday, 28 October 2009 21:49 | 
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A while back (yes, I’ve been working on it slowly, as well as all the other suggestions I’ve received) Narcissus came up with a great suggestion for a feature. Let me just share in her own words this great idea and my challenge to deliver!
The thing is, during that last scene in GGY, through the flood of tears as Dean watched the truck driving away with Sam, I still had to giggle because I KNEW he would turn his head back and the episode would end with a shot of the ubiquitous troubled profile of that pretty, pretty face. I call it the Winchester Troubled-Profile of Doom. I don't know if you've noticed, but they do that A LOT on the show. The angst, the out-of-focus background, immediately followed by the Winchester Troubled-Profile of Doom...aaaand...fade to black. So, on to my main point, I think it'd be cool if there was a post on the best WTPoD's (excuse all the acronyms)..or a compilation of all the WTPoD there ever was (probably countless), or you know, whatever along those lines. I think you can see the insanity angle here 
Hmm, an interesting challenge. I of course started pouring through 88 episodes and found that counting them all was an impossible task. Of course in this process, I discovered something else. Sam and Dean each have their own looks for the WTPoD. Dean’s is the afore mentioned profile. Sam, he just tightens his lips and takes it all in. So, we have Dean's Troubled Profile of Doom and Sam's Somber Face of Despair. Both use these trademark looks for heightened dramatic effect and have done so for all five seasons. When the chips are down, they go with what works.
Below is a selection of the more powerful ones from each brother by episode. If anything, we know that both of these guys know how to push our buttons.
Dean Winchester’s Troubled Profile of Doom
Nightmare
The first one that stood out the most for me is Dean at the end of Nightmare. Sam has just confessed he saved Dean only after moving a large piece of furniture with his mind. Dean jokes, pretends not to take it seriously, and admits Sam's newfound psychic visions would serve them well in Vegas. Sam leaves not amused, so the final shot is Dean in the motel room doorway. Suddenly his expression is one of worry. He turns his head and there it is, the lingering profile of doom, the one that shall become our friend for seasons to come. Lights out and fade to black. Sure, Dean has used his pensive profile before to lesser extents so far, but this is its first time for in-your-face closing drama. (Pardon the quality of my season one screencaps. They’re not good when they're dark.)
Last Updated (Monday, 07 December 2009 23:45)
I once loaded up the 5-disc DVD Player all night thru 4 seasons to try and disprove my sisters theory that Dean's left profile is much more handsome than his right. No definitive answer was gleaned, but it was a hell of a night. (We also spent a night trying to prove that sometimes Jared stands in a whole, because at times Sam appears to tower over Dean, and other times the guys look around the same height. But thats a comment for another article) I look forward to Sam's Somber Face of Despair!
OH, excuse me .
Ahem - great article. I look forward to Sam's next.
mmmmmm Jared's profile.....
so happy you’re back!! Hope you feel better and thanks so much for this lovely article!! Dean’s profile… sigh… Being right there with Tigershire…
Unfortunately, I had not read Narcissus’ suggestion before, and I loved what you did with it!
Funny – yesterday I watched second season’s ep. 20 with Eric Kripke’s commentary, and there is one scene with a beautiful Dean profile (and we know there are many… you found so enchanting examples here… Cheers, Alice! The one from ‘In The Beginning’ had been my desktop for a while), and Kripke himself mentioned that to be something like a trademark, the troubled Winchester profile (can’t remember the exact phase, sorry. So Narcissus had a great instinct and discovered something the creator found to be some kind of trademark for the show. Obviously they joke around about stuff like that on set, which is just adorable…. I just love it when people take their jobs seriously, but not so much themselves.. .
Can’t wait to for your Sam-Winchester-Somber-Face-of-Despair!! Ah, Sammy…
Tigershire, looks like I’m drooling at the idea alone… Where are my meds…?
All my best, Jas
You didn't miss Narcissus' suggestion. She emailed it to me. Thanks so much for mention of the commentary. Kripke always had great things to say.
Oh, Jensen has the most hottest profile ever... I'd say it's nearly perfect. *heart*
You posted some great ones and the AHBL 2 is my fave... Those scenes just KILLED me *wibble*
A few memorable ones came to my mind... In Hunted when Gordon tells tied-down-Dean about the trap to Sam, In WIAWSNB (this is the one where Kripke told about the troubled profile if I'm not mistaken) are few beautiful ones, Home had a pretty teary one too.
But these pics were dreamy *drool* and sad *sniff*
Can't wait for the Sammy-installation
BTW, I have a top10 idea (if it hasn't been recommended or done allready, you've got a few articles here *grin*): TOp10 kids of SPN
Top 10 kids? Good idea. I'll put it on the suggestion list.
Hey look! A Dean article! One of several!
Look forward to Sam's somber faces. That should be very interesting.
Great fun article Alice. I echo the comments made that Kripke himself even noted this somewhat trademark shot of the series in WIAWSNB. Oh, the horror of having the disc damaged!
Yeah, eppie night, eppie night!
oh no, damaged copy… that’s cruel! I love the commentaries on the dvds, and – I completely agree with you – Kripke always shares some great insights, with a huge amount of humour and wit. In that particular episode (yes, Supernarttu, it is What Is and What Should Never Be, you’re not mistaken) he also pointed out that he was reading some of the stuff that’s being posted online.
If memory serves, I think he says the following: ‘Thanks to the fans, thanks for your support of the show, and we love the work that we’re doing here. We have a show that we’re very proud of. We think it’s getting better and better. We keep working on ways to make it better and better. You seem to respond to that and appreciate that and encourage us, except for those people online - you know who you are! –but we’re having the time of our life.’
I’m in wild agreement with you there, Eric Kripke. What I loved in particular about his commentary is the respect for everyone working on the show that comes across and the great fun everybody working there seems to be having.
Unfortunately, Warner Bros. apparently has some trouble defining what to put on their dvds. The region 2 Season Four hardly contained any extras, so I had to get a region 1 copy to be able to enjoy the great commentaries (there’s Kripke again with Jeremy Carver on In The Beginning, and Kripke on Lucifer Rising, furthermore Sera Gamble and Robert Singer on When The Levee Breaks , loved all of it, some scenes made more sense all of a sudden. I would have loved to find a comment by the leading actors, as well, as they have been very funny in season one and two, and insightful, though in a different fashion than the producers’ of course).
By the way, loved the change of the quote up there (is that called banner? Not sure…)
I’d like to submit a wish for Sam’s Look of Despair… My eyes well up every time I watch When The Levee Breaks’ ‘then-shoot-me’ scene… Don’t really remember whether there is a close up here, hardly ever see it clearly for obvious reasons… Just heartbreaking, really.
Love, Jas
Gosh, you guys have epi night (hello Elle2….), and we Europeans have to wait for the online post… How about a sigh of compassion…?
Anyways, I'll just repost - So, Sorry for the double posting!
Alice is back! *Waves*
Thanks for the fun article! I do love me some Winchester Profiles of Doom (WPoD) - they're usually the moments that really stick in my mind since they usually occur at such dramatic moments. Hmm... I'm going off of memory here since my S1 dvds are loaned out at the moment, but is there a WPoD in Home when Dean calls John for help? I might be wrong. It's been some time since I've seen that ep (which is a problem which I'll need to rectify soon!)
@SableGreen... Wait, Dean's "frozen face" ? I'm confused. :{
Sablegreen - right! that Frozen Face is hilarious... For the time being I have that I-have-you-back-hug from Lazarus Rising as my desktop wallpaper. Perhaps I'll put the other on.
Take care, y'all, Jas
Loved this one Alice, I used to call this profiles scenes of "the boy need a hug" scene but I like Narcissus WTPoD better, so I'm using it from now on.
And since I need a new wallpaper (ok, not really but seeing this Dean screen caps and anticipating Sam ones... well, you know...) I'm gonna wait for Sam's article and then I'm getting all the screen caps from both articles and gonna find a way of "building" me a new wallpaper, got the feeling it's gonna look great
looks like many of us started thinking about desktop/wallpaper, maybe you should have called this piece the WallpaperFashionShowOfTRoubledProfile, to found on the same Broadway-stage occupied at present by the new Croatoan - Musical 'Miss Thigh Gone'. Don't know whether there might be some free-stage-time, from what I hear they're rehearsing 'We Will Torch You', then preproduction will begin for 'Samuel and the amazing bloodcolour dreamcar, closely followed by 'The Kiss of The Demonwoman'... Any idea, how to get tickets?
Love y'all, Jas
How can you not love those pensive and haunting profiles, they really stay with you.
And when he brings on those anguished and devastated looks, I’m a blubbering mess.
The talent Jensen possesses is phenomenal.
I feel really fortunate that Jensen took the roll of Dean.
Blessings, Jas